PLAYER EVAL: TE Jordan Reed, Washington

Do you know that Jordan Reed is only 26 years old? Now for transparency he will be 27 on July 3. But I digress. We are here to talk about the tight end position, and in particular Jordan Reed (Hence the title, I know, clever as a top hat).

Everyone knows that Reed has had six concussions in his NFL career, one for each year of playing pro. Of course another impressive stat is how he caught 200 balls in just 38 games, fastest to that mark of any other tight end.

Now, of all tight ends in our fantasy world, how many out there really have the talent worth a high pick? Trick question, with the answer being not many. Sure, many point to Travis Kelce and his great performance last year. But truthfully, he did well because not many tight ends really did, hence inflating his value. And Rob Gronkowski is back, assuming his back holds up. And Tyler Eifert! Assuming he doesn’t get injured again as well. Oh I see, so Kelce doesn’t get injured like these other guys. He’s just a better investment.

Granted all things considered, these four (And Greg Olsen for another year. Maybe two?) arguably make up the top tier in redraft for both standard and points per reception scoring. But what about Reed?

Dynasty buy for sure! Unless of course he gets another concussion (He is due one to keep up with his pattern of one a year). Except this time he is out for good. So maybe a sell after one good game of 20-plus points. Oh! About that.

Let’s compare Gronkowski to Reed in number of times hitting 20-plus points in a game from 2014-16 (Using a full point per reception, where touchdowns are worth six):

Gronkowski: 15 (And he missed nine games in the time).

Reed: 9 (And he missed eleven games in that time).

While we are at it, how about comparing Kelce?

Kelce: 7 (And he missed zero games in that time).

What does this all mean? And why 20-plus? I mean, that is just arbitrary! Yes. Yes it is. But to be fair, it is important to see. When we have players hit that mark, it exponentially increases our chances of winning that week. And really, fantasy football is a weekly game. That’s the key. That is why we need to talk about something.

I believe we love to bash Reed. We know Gronkowski is a stud, but who after him can even come close? Reed. Reed can, and has. Not only that, but we love to label Reed as injury prone (the concussion collage doesn’t help). The reality is these guys miss time (unless you are Travis Kelce, apparently). None of that matters, however, when your guy goes out with 20 points compared to their guy getting five. The advantage is clear. And so I plead, when Reed comes your way, consider the athletically gifted talent for what he is worth; a daring fantasy football championship win … or loss by concussion and your league mates making fun of your moves.

With Reed’s value bouncing all over the place, consider him in all leagues to give Gronkowski a run for his money.